To Be found Innocent is the Worst Crime of All
by Takada Saiko
Summary: Gypsy children have been disapearing all over Paris and Clopin sets out to try to find out what is going on. He finds the children, and more than he ever wanted. Sealed by a deal to save their life, will it cost him his sanity and his very soul?
1. A Gypsy Cannot Survive Behind Stone Wall

Title: To Be Found Innocent is the Worst Crime of All

Author: Saiko

Rating: T

Chapter One: A Gypsy Cannot Survive Behind Stone Walls

"Clopin Trouillefou, you have hereby been found guilty of the crime of treason against your own people," the voice rang out through the darkened cave. They were outside of Paris, outside his wonderful Court of Miracles, and he no longer felt at peace. Though, if he were honest with himself, he had not felt at peace for many months. He shifted his hazel eyes up to where the executioner stood, refusing to meet his gaze.

"Those that sought protection in Paris were given to the guards, is that wrong?" the man on the stage called to the crowd of rag-covered Gypsies.

The yells of affirmation came back with such a loud roar that it made Clopin's head hurt. These were his people who were staring at him, jeering him, and calling for his death. He couldn't deny the claims, and that was what kept him quiet. He deserved this, every inch of it. He hung his regal head.

"See, no denial comes from his lips!" the man upon the stage called out, swinging his open palm in a wild motion towards the fallen king. "And for this, he will hang!"

The cheers died out to the King of Thune's ears as he suddenly realized what people meant when they said that a dying man would see his life flash before his eyes, though in his case, sadly, the happiness and joy that had made up the majority of his colourful career eluded him. Nothing came about having to do with the anything except the past several months. It hurt, but nevertheless, it came.

It was a chilly day in November and winter was quickly setting upon the citizens of Paris. The wind had picked up, causing the urchins if the street to fall around each other in a huddle. Fires had leapt up around the streets for warming small hands as the sun set in the sky.

A lone figure was out walking, sliding silently through shadows and watching everything around him. It was too quiet for as early as the night was and it truly wasn't blistering cold yet. The first snow still was yet to fall. The King of Thunes let a sigh escape his lips as his boots shuffled. His darkened clothing, compared to his performance attire, helped a bit with the shadows, but he did not blend entirely.

He slowed his step as he heard two pairs of small feet shuffling quickly after him. He turned to see four large, round eyes, blue and grey in colour, peering up at him. They were two Gypsy children from the Court of Miracles who had not returned yet. "Clopin!" they called out in unison.

"Shouldn't you both be home by now? It's far past time."

"They've been following us all afternoon," the one with blue eyes said in hushed tones, glancing behind his shoulder every couple of words.

"We couldn't get away," the other agreed. "We tried every escape route we know and there was a new soldier at every turn."

"Just like the other children," the first said, a frightened tone to his voice.

Clopin stood in thought a moment and then patted each boy on the head. "Run along. I'll take care of our little guard friends."

"Thank you!" the children said together and rushed off.

As soon as they left two guards rounded the corner and it looked as if they might be the only ones that were following. Clopin, from the shadows, stuck one long leg out to trip the first one and watched as they tripped over the other one. They rolled for what would have been several strides and fell in a heap. The Gypsy King stepped out with a wide grin on his thin face and a laugh bursting forth from his lips. "Hello there, dear soldiers, what might you be up to at this hour. Chasing small children to give nightmares, perhaps?"

"Gypsy scum!" one cried out, jumping to his feet. Clopin easily maneuvered out of his way and ducked the second one, pulling a knife from his boot all in one swift motion. The knife was held to one thick neck and a boot was against the other.

"Now, why is it that you are chasing the children from my clan?"

"Little thieves are all they are."

"Little thieves, perhaps, but still little either which way. Shouldn't you be picking on someone your own size?" He had his mouth open to say something else, but a clanging sound echoed through the street. An ache began to spread through his head as he tried to figure out where it had come from and he sank into darkness as the realization hit: these two were only a distraction.

The cell came into focus slowly and the Gypsy King put a hand to his head. His gloves had been ripped off and his shirt was torn. His boots were gone as well, leaving his feet bare and everything ached. No weapons on him, no stashed knives. He'd come from a friend's tavern and had not expected to be jumped. True, children had been turning up missing, but he didn't expect to get to the bottom of it so quickly.

"Well now," a stale voice met his ears as he came to a little more to. Claude Frollo's horrid face came into focus, leaning over the thin man and was sneering. "Have I truly gotten my hands around the famed king of the Gypsies?"

"Clopin Trouillefou, certainly not at your service." The slap across the face that was already sore spread the hurt through his head. Clopin curled involuntarily into a ball on the dank floor.

"Insolent fool!" Frollo yelled, kicking Clopin firmly in the ribs. A cold smile spread across his lips as the younger man groaned. "You will tell me what it is that you know."

"I don't know anything."

"You know everything!" the judge hissed. "Tell me where your precious Court is, and you shall be freed with little pain."

"Why, shouldn't the court be in the palace, and we're underneath your Palace of Justice!" Clopin forced a laugh. The laugh was cut short as Frollo hauled him up with surprising strength and another guard caught a hold of him. He was dragged down the corridor with no words and shackled up in another room.

"Your Court of Miracles," Frollo pressed.

"No such thing," the King answered. The blow from the whip was swift and hurtful. It stung his chest and he cringed.

"Do not lie to me, Gypsy," Frollo growled out. "I know that your court exists, and I know it is here in Paris. Tell me where."

"I won't tell you a damn thing!" Clopin yelled, fire in his eyes. "You could kill me and never know. Good luck to you, Monsieur, but you have failed in this little endeavor."

A dark look crossed the judge's face and he turned his back on the captured man. "Continue your job, sir, and I will be back in an hour."

Clopin watched the tall man walk from the torture room and felt the chains pull a little tighter around his wrists. "You're going to talk, Gypsy, you may want to learn that quickly." The lashes came one after the other. After the first ten he hardly felt anything and he faded into darkness.

Things came into focus slowly and Clopin realized he was still strung up. His arms ached, his chest ached, and he felt weak from blood loss. The door opened with a creak that hurt his battered head and he cringed, regretting the reaction as soon as it happened.

"Are you willing to speak, Trouillefou?" Frollo's voice echoed in his ears.

"Not on your life," the king answered with a forced smile on his bloody lips. A cough shook his battered body and he shook. "You can't make me talk. I will never betray my people."

"Bring them in," Frollo called and a guard disappeared. A moment later he led in a group of Gypsy children. Each face matched those of the children that had disappeared. "Recognize them? I think you've been missing them."

There was a pause as the children began struggling on their restraints. "Clopin!" "We thought we'd never see anyone again!" "He's been cruel, Clopin!" "They've beaten us!" "They've starved us!" "They've tried to make us talk!" "But we haven't told them anything, Clopin!" Their voices all blended into one, but it brought tears to the King of Thune's eyes.

"It's alright," he promised, forcing himself not to openly sob. "We'll get you out of here."

"There's only one way," Frollo answered him with a sly smile that sent chills up his captive's spine. "If you give us the way to capture all of the Gypsies, I will allow the children to live. As it is, by the end of the week, I will have every child. You cannot keep children hidden forever."

"You will kill them to get the rest of us!"

"They're only Gypsies," Frollo answered with a small shrug. "I will take them one by one until you give them up, and I will burn each of them in front of Notre Dame until you find it in your heart to release your secrets."

"Even if I gave it to you, you wouldn't have all of us!" Clopin yelled. "We're scattered."

"Then gather them."

"Take me instead!" Clopin begged.

"I want all of you."

"And if I do this, how do I know that you will not kill them anyway?"

"I will make up a contract, Gypsy king, and you and I will both sign it. We will be bound by the law, under the eyes of God."

A shudder passed through Clopin and he hung his head. He heard the brave shouts of the children and he broke. Tears flooded down his cheeks and he sobbed. "All right. Just let them go."

"Not until you deliver them."

"Swear you won't touch a hair on their heads!" he screamed, a new energy flooding his body. It hurt but he didn't care. "Swear it! On your life, on God, I don't give a damn! Just swear it!"

Frollo was taken aback by the desperation in the chained man's eyes. "Very well," he murmured.

All the energy was now expended and he collapsed against the chains. "And I must be given time. For them not to suspect, it will take time."

"Also done. Will you sign?"

"I will."

Clopin was released from his chains and fell to the floor with a thud. A quill was placed in his hand and he signed his name blindly. Even if he was told to read it, he wouldn't have understood it all. He was perfectly literate, but it was written in a way that only those with full education could have had a chance of understanding. Tears stained the paper and he pushed himself up. "I need a moment with them, before you take them away. Give me that at least."

A thin hand waved and Frollo left the Gypsy and the children alone. They gathered around their king, comforting and embracing him. He was their hero. Many of them knew him as their only hope, the one who had stolen them from death's grip upon the streets and given them a life with their people. Each of their voices blended and he tried to hush them gently. "Now now, you know I will get you out of this."

"Mommy and Papa," one little girl sniffed.

"They'll be alright, I promise. I'll find some way around all of this, don't worry about that. I will have to, but I need all of you to be brave. Do I have your words?"

"Always," they agreed. That was all Clopin needed before he collapsed into darkness, pain overtaking his body. When he next opened his eyes he was on the cold streets, propped in an alley and left to do his work that had been set out. He broke down and cried.


	2. No Plan in Sight

Chapter Two: No Plan in Sight

It was surprisingly easy to miss the thin, limping Gypsy barely making it through the streets of Paris late at night. The stars were out and the moon was high, but it was not the same one he'd seen when he was captured by the guards. A full day had passed, if not two. Everyone would begin to get worried with no one knowing where he was. No one was following his staggering footsteps, surprisingly enough, but he kept a wary eye to out to be safe. He had to have time to figure a way to get the children to safety without giving up those children or losing more.

One more glance told him that he was alone as he entered the seemingly abandoned cemetery. His eyes took longer than usual to adjust to the darkness and he tripped, landing with his face buried in the sewage. He sputtered and coughed, blood seeping from the back of his throat. He had no idea how bad the injuries were, but he knew he needed help. Many were skilled with healing beneath the streets of Paris and could rival any physician above. He needed to be with his people and to make sure that he survived. He was the only one that could save those children.

With great effort the King of Thunes pushed his wounded body upward, tottering to his feet. With one hand against the wall for support he made it down the way with much difficulty. Finally the scent began to change from the murky smell of the bowels of Paris to a more enjoyable aroma. Spices and incense of many kinds filled his nose and he knew he was nearly home.

"Clopin!" a voice rang out, shrill with fear as he first hit the lights of the main room. Somewhere distantly he knew it was Claire, his elder sister, and began to reach out for her. She caught his hand and braced him as much as she could when his legs collapsed beneath him. His body was eased to the floor 

and her frantic cries hurt his head. "Someone bring a healer!" She shifted him so that he was looking upward. "What happened?"

"I was coming back from the tavern and was… caught unawares," he murmured, choking a bit on his own words. It hurt to breathe, to speak, or even to stay awake, though he knew he could not fall.

"Frollo did this." It was not a question. Everyone in the Court, or perhaps all of Paris, knew the Minister of Justice was just waiting for a chance to catch the Gypsy King and make a show of him for the rest of the city: this is what will happen to all Gypsies. "How did you escape?"

"With much difficulty," the thin man answered with a half attempt at a grin. It was not an entire lie for he had not wanted to leave those children in the care of a demon.

"You're safe now, brother," Claire promised him, stroking his hair back. It was damp against her hand, as fever had already begun to set in and she clung to him until the healer approached.

"Frollo's doing?" he asked, eying his patient carefully. When the affirmative nod came he sighed. "Pick him up gently. Easy now."

Clopin bit back a cry of pain as he was lifted from his sister's lap. He vaguely noted that his younger brother, Jules, was one of the men carrying him. Each step jolted his wounds a little more and he grinded his teeth against the pain. It seemed a small eternity until they set him down on a pile of blankets in a small, secluded area in which he usually slept. There was no door, but there was a bit more privacy than was given to most.

"I need you to stay with me, Clopin," the healer spoke gently.

"I'm here."

"Good. Now, the age old question, where does it hurt?"

"Everywhere."

A sigh escaped his lips and his nimble hands began to skim over tan skin. Long red gashes showed signs of the whip used against him and they wrapped around his lithe frame, snaking up and down his arms and legs. As the fingers poked and prodded, they found shifting bones that should not have and a cry of pain from the otherwise silent king. "Easy now. They really had it in for you."

"Of course they did," Claire growled. "Etienne, I know you haven't been in Paris more than a year, but I would have thought you'd known that much by now."

Etienne sighed again and shook his head. "People are not so cruel to our kind, where I come from."

"Well they're regular bastards here," Clopin managed between gritted teeth.

"So I see." The healer reached into his sack and pulled a salve out. "This will help, but not completely numb you."

The salve stung as it was being applied over the multiple wounds, but it slowly spread a warmth over his aching body and allowed him to relax and slowly drift into sleep.

"I'm not sure how he managed to escape," Etienne murmured, looking between the king's two siblings. "No normal man should have."

"How bad is he?" Jules asked, fear shining in his eyes. The entire Court had been tense for the last week or two, as children had slowly been turning up missing. Nothing was known of their whereabouts and rumours had begun to spread. He had taken his elder sister's advice and kept his own children safely under the protection of the Court of Miracles just as she had.

"He has two ribs that must be broken, which worries me about bleeding from the inside. His wounds from the whip have already begun to become infected and a knot has formed on the back of his head. He has lost too much blood from the look of his complexion, but the lashes didn't do all of it, and that is why I fear for unseen bleeding."

"What can we do?" Claire murmured.

"Watch him carefully and keep a cool rag on his head to keep the fever down. The wounds may seal themselves, and for that we have only prayer. He's in bad shape."

Both siblings nodded and watched as the healer walked away. He was shaking his head in such a way that did not quiet Claire's aching heart. "I'll see that demon dead for this," she vowed.

"Don't do anything rash," Jules said quietly, a sad look in his dark eyes. "We must find out the full story first. You know there's always more to the tale than first given."

The elder Gypsy nodded and sat herself down next to her injured brother, soaking a rag in a bowl of water one of her lads had brought in for his dearest uncle. This would be a long night.

The fire was the first thing he saw. All of Paris was burning, it seemed, and the children were in the middle of it. Ghostly images approached him, horrible scars from burns patching their faces and reminding him of what would come if he could not find a way to save them. The faces changed, each child that he had seen in the cellar and more to come. It hurt with each passing face and he knew that his physical body was thrashing around, trying to rid his mind of the images that plagued it. He must find 

a way to change it. He must find a way to stop it. There had to be a way and by his honour he would find it and make everything right.

A set of hazel eyes lined with a dark green colour fluttered open. Their owner winced as his head began to throb uncontrollably, but he forced them to stay open. Who was with him? "Claire?"

"Right here, brother," she whispered, sitting up quickly. She reached an unsteady hand to his brow and found the fever to have broken some time during the long night. "How do you feel?"

"Horrible," Clopin answered in a dull but honest voice.

"Do you think you might be able to eat or drink anything?"

"Perhaps." The thought sickened him, but he couldn't tell her that. He didn't have time for food or drink or even rest, for that matter. He had to find a way to save those children. His eyes watched her and for a brief moment he played with the idea of confiding in he what he had done. He thought better of it immediately. This was his own demon he must face and defeat, and he must do it alone.

"Clopin?" Claire's voice reached him.

"Yes?"

"I'm glad to see you awake. You had us all quite worried."

Clopin shook his head, his dark hair falling around him. "Don't worry over me. Soon enough, we'll have many larger ordeals to worry about."

She nodded, not knowing entirely what he meant, and set towards the task of trying to get food and drink down his throat.

Deep in one of the crevices of the old catacombs a single light burned. Gathered around it was a small group of seven children, huddled closely together in secret.

"How can he get away with that?" one demanded, a small boy for the age of ten, looking greatly awkward with his features he had not yet grown into.

"Because they have the permission of the Minister of Justice. They can do anything, Gabriel," an older girl, his sister, grumbled as she shifted a baby on her hip. "Haven't you learned that, or do you think we hide amongst the sewers for our health?"

"Don't be so mean, Adrienne," her younger cousin Marc chastised. "Gabe can't help it if he's slow.'

"I'm not slow, you twit," Gabriel growled back. "I just don't think it's right."

"Of course it's not," the eldest of the cousins, Henri, stated firmly. "It's not right at all. Children from the Court have been disappearing, and I bet you I know who's done it." A gleam had entered his dark eyes that caught each of the younger children's attention. He grinned, his deviant smile looking much like his dearest uncle's when he was up to a mischievous tale.

"Who, Henri?" Camille asked as she tugged on Adrienne's skirts, wanting to hold her baby sister.

"Leave it alone, Camille," Adrienne snapped. She turned to her elder brother. "Who do you think has been kidnapping?"

Henri, with all the knowledge a fourteen year old possesses, stated, "Well, Frollo of course!"

"What would he want with kids?" Isaac demanded, looking up at his elder brother.

"He wants us all dead, don't you see, and you kill children, then who will carry on the Gypsy legacy?" Henri explained.

"What's a 'le-ga-cy'?" Camille asked, sounding out the word carefully.

"Never mind, just listen. I have a plan to get to the bottom of all of this!"

"Henri!" Claire's voice echoed through the catacombs. "Adrienne? Gabriel? Marc. Isaac. Are your cousins with you?"

"Yes, Maman!" Henri hollered back.

"Well bring them up. Your uncle is awake."

The children looked at each other in excitement and scrambled from their positions, Marc nearly knocking baby Brigitte from his elder sister's hands in their hurry. The sound of pattering feet could be heard as the rushed up their passage ways and came a little bit closer to the surface and into the Court of Miracles.

"Maman, how is Uncle Clopin?' Adrienne asked as she handed her baby cousin to her aunt, ushering the irritating Camille after her.

"He's awake," Claire murmured, taking her nieces hand when Inès took charge of her youngest. "Now, don't you all go rushing in… at once."

"I want to go too, Aunt Claire!" Camille said sternly.

With a shrug that told that she couldn't see the difference in allowing one more small child into the room, she let go of the four year old's hand and watched her rush after the others.

Six children encircled their dearest Uncle Clopin, barely giving him room to breathe, but that was alright. He brightened up considerably as they entered, stumbling over one another. He adored his sister's five urchins as much as he did his brother's two young girls. They all might have well have been his own, the way he spoiled them.

"Do you feel better, Uncle Clopin?" Isaac asked.

"Does it hurt?" Marc questioned.

"Was Frollo mean?" Camille piped in.

"Let him answer one before you bombarded him with more questions!" Henri snapped, eying the younger children carefully.

Clopin chuckled at this, wishing he hadn't as his ribs reminded him painfully he was not whole. "It's alright, Henri. They're only worried."

"Are you going to be able to do your puppet show tomorrow?" Gabriel asked, eyes wide.

"Gabe!" the two older cousins snapped at him.

"What?"

Clopin forced his body to obey his commands as he sat up, leaning heavily on the wall behind him. His shoulders slouched and he stretched his legs out before him. "I don't think by tomorrow," he answered quietly. "I'm truly sorry, Gabriel."

"It's alright, Uncle Clopin," Isaac assured him with the confidence only a child as small as he could muster. "As long as you can by my birthday next week. You promised."

"That I did," his royal uncle acknowledged. "I'm sure our dear puppet friends will make a grand appearance at your birthday. You'll be two, non?"

"Two, Uncle Clopin!" the little boy yelled, his shrill voice hurting the King of Thune's head. "I'll be six!"

"My my," Clopin answered with a sideways glance at the older two. "What a man you're becoming.

"Are you truly alright, Uncle Clopin?" Henri asked, eyeing him carefully.

"Of course."

"You know we won't rest until something is done," Adrienne said bravely.

"Now, you two," Clopin began, but stopped, glancing back at the younger children. "Might I have a word with just Henri and Adrienne?" He watched the younger children sigh and shuffle out downheartedly and then turned back to the elder two. "I want your words on something," he said firmly, looking them each in the eye. He always knew he'd have trouble from these two, even if their mother ignored it. She stated they were two much like their dearest uncle.

"Anything, Uncle Clopin," they said together.

"You two will leave Frollo well enough alone. Let me handle this one."

"But Uncle Clopin!"

"No buts," the Gypsy King said with a waggle of his finger. "Only promises."

"Very well," they conceded, eyes cast downward.

"It's not so bad, I promise," Clopin assured them. "Now run along and play."

They shuffled out, eyes staring down at the floor and mouths bent in frowns. "Aren't we too old for play, Henri?" Adrienne asked.

"I think your right, dear sister," the elder answered. "Perhaps Uncle Clopin doesn't realize this."

"He'll be on the mend longer than the others realize. We really should handle this before anyone else is hurt."

"I couldn't agree more," Henri said and the two disappeared into the catacombs.


	3. The Children's Plan Unfolds

Chapter Three: The Children's Plans Unfold

True to his word, Frollo had begun to hasten his roundup of the Gypsy children throughout the next week. He could not get all of them as Clopin had given strict orders, which he rarely did, that the children were to remain within the Court of Miracles until they discovered what was happening to them all. True, he knew, but he could not say. If he were to let the information leak out, even to one person, then the entire Court would find out, spreading it to those all around Paris. He could not afford to have an uprising against Frollo at this point. They were not ready and he knew it. He simply hoped that he could gain enough time to come up with some sort of strategy on how to best deal with the predicament that he found himself in.

It was a full week before Claire allowed her younger brother out of his sleeping nook and he was about to go stir crazy. He snuck out without her direct permission, and certainly without the healer's, and limped his injured self into the main room, catching the eyes of many. It seemed as if everyone's spirits lifted upon seeing their king.

"Uncle Clopin!"

The dark haired king turned and saw his eldest nephew rushing towards him. He stopped suddenly, landed gracefully where most would have tripped, and had an overly serious look on his face. He peered up at his uncle with an intensity that worried Clopin.

"Staying out of trouble?"

"Of course, Uncle Clopin," Henri assured him with a sideways glance. "I was wondering, since you are feeling better, might you tell me a story?"

"What kind?' Clopin asked warily.

"About what happened," Adrienne answered, seeming to come out of nowhere on his other side.

Clopin did not like the look in his eldest nephew and niece's faces. They were up to something, and he had a good idea what. He had been their age once, and the sad thing was that he had never grown out of the mischief. He knew what he would have done if he'd seen this happen to someone he cared about, and, though he'd never admit it verbally, he knew they idolized him. "Now why would you want to know gruesome details like that?"

"We've outgrown children's stories," Henri said easily.

"So you want a grownup story?"

"Yes," they answered together.

"Well," Clopin drawled out, hobbling over to where he could sit and stretch his aching legs out. He was surprised how much energy he'd used up simply walking a small distance and then standing for a few moments. The children followed him and sat with their legs crossed on either side. "It doesn't seem as it should matter too much, because there is nothing to be done about it. You have a curfew."

"Younger than fifteen have a curfew," Henri grumbled.

"And you are not yet fifteen."

"I will be soon."

This stung the Gypsy King. He was much more observant than most gave him credit for. In everything he analyzed the best path for his people to take and made sure that way was clear. He'd watched the ages of the children disappearing and noticed that even if an elder sibling had been walking with the other, they would avoid the elder. Fifteen, to Clopin, seemed to be the cutoff. He wasn't sure why, or even why Frollo would be so desperate to get the kids if not to take out everyone he could to have less work later, but that is what he had seen. When he pieced it together, he'd made it as clear as day that no child under fifteen would leave the Court for any reason. The adults would take turns watching the urchins while their parents made their living, but the children had little choice in the matter.

"You won't budge me on this," Clopin assured the young Gypsy boy. "I care too much for you and do not want to see my dearest elder sister cry."

"They wouldn't dare touch us," Adrienne stated haughtily. "They can't catch us."

"I thought the same and look now," Clopin motioned to the many bandages that covered his otherwise bare torso.

"Even if they did we wouldn't talk, Uncle Clopin," Henri assured him. "We'd take our secrets to the grave, just as you were willing to do."

"You'd be surprised what the human body can take, Henri," Clopin answered him seriously. "I took my beatings at your age and learned to have a still tongue through it. Don't suspect it is a talent you are born with."

"We're not getting the story, are we, Uncle Clopin?" Adrienne asked almost sadly.

"No, you're not, dear."

Both young spirits seemed to drop immediately in defeat. Their heads hung and their shoulders slumped, eyes not wanting to meet their uncle's. Clopin smiled lovingly at them and ruffled Henri's hair. "Just be strong for the young ones, do you hear me?" He paused in thought. "Just… watch over them for me, if anything were to ever happen, do you hear me?"

"Nothing will happen as long as they stay here," Adrienne said in a sad voice. "We're stuck in these walls. Sanctuary."

"This is not a church, Adrienne. Do not think if they discovered our whereabouts they would not slaughter us with glee." The dark comment stated, Clopin stood and limped away, leaving the young siblings to ponder his words.

As the weeks past children slipped out. It was everything from parent's not knowing of the curfew, not thinking anything of it, or children being tired of being trapped. At the end of the first month since Clopin's capture, the tension was great within the Court.

"Sit down somewhere, you're making me dizzy," Claire griped, watching her younger brother pace up and down the stretch.

"It doesn't matter what we do, they keep going."

"They're children, you can't keep them here."

"They're being taken, Claire!"

She sighed and pushed her dark hair from her face. "I know, Clopin. It frightens me… greatly. I have five children that have not seen daylight in a month now, Inès and Jules have a child that has a future of this alone in her sight… It's disturbing."

"And what choice do we have?" the king snapped.

"You saw nothing of those children when you were beneath the Palace of Justice?" Claire pushed. "Nothing at all? No hint or whisper?"

"I was rather tied up," Clopin growled. He caught himself when tears built in his sister's eyes. "I'm sorry. I…"

"You have a great weight on you, I know. I'm sorry to push you so hard. I know you're just as worried as I am. I don't think even Frollo would take children like this. What use would he have for them?"

Clopin chose to remain silent on this and turned away. He could not allow anyone to see the tears gathering in his own eyes. It hurt more than he could ever describe, and it was driving him slowly insane.

No one spoke to Clopin about the disappearing children unless he brought it up. He slowly began to shift back into his old self, his smile returned, though even through it all, the children remained in the back of his mind and haunting his nightmares. Night after night he woke to hear himself screaming and was thankful that no one seemed to notice, and if they did they said nothing.

November had come and gone, December was halfway through. The cold chilled the Gypsies to the bone and Christmas was not looking to be a pleasant one. Families were being ripped apart at the seams, and what Children were left were losing their minds to boredom.

"Will we at least get to go to the Festival?" Camille asked, peering up from her spot on the floor where she and her cousins, aunt, uncle, and parents were eating.

Jules looked to his elder brother, appearing as if he were waiting for an answer. Clopin sighed and set what was left of his bread down. "It is coming up soon, and I know all of you have worked very hard… I shouldn't imagine anything would be wrong with that."

An explosion erupted through the cousins as they tackled their uncle. "Do you really mean it?" "Can we go?" "I've got a costume that I've been working on." "Can I help you introduce the King of Fools this year, Uncle Clopin?"

This brought a true laugh from the King of Vagabonds. "Yes, yes, that's wonderful, and perhaps," he answered them in the order that the questions had been thrown. He watched as they scurried off, all piling over one another in excitement. He turned to the other adults. "I hope that was right," he confided.

"It was unavoidable," Inès murmured. "You know that the Festival would be nothing without the children there."

"Yes, it is more or less for them."

"The adults like it just as well," Claire laughed as she stood, gathering her children's things. "But, to answer your question, little brother, yes I believe you did the right thing by letting them go. Whether it be Frollo or something else, surely they will give us a rest for the Festival. It is our day."

"I hope so," Clopin murmured and set out to see how preparations for the festival were going.

"I've got a plan," Henri stated to his brothers, sister, and cousins. He had been unusually antsy lately, seeming to pick up on his uncle's mood swings, but just as Clopin's spirits had begun to raise with the thought of the Festival of Fools, so had the children's.

"What plan?" Marc asked as he munched on a small loaf of bread.

"It will take all of us," Henri began to explain dramatically. "It will happen at the Feast of Fools. You see, with everything in such an uproar, there is no way the guards can watch that everyone is behaving and catch us as well, so they'll pay us little heed."

"With that on our side we can sneak in and find the other children," Adrienne finished for her brother.

He nodded his approval. "Exactly."

"How will we get past the guards?" Gabriel asked.

"Didn't you just hear us, twit?" Henri grumbled. "They won't even pay attention to children at the festival. They never have. We aren't the ones that cause trouble."

"We don't cause trouble ever and they're still taking us!" the younger boy protested. "It's not a good idea. Uncle Clopin's gonna be mad."

"This is going to help Uncle Clopin, Gabe," his elder brother promised. "He's been worried since they started disappearing, but he can't find any strong leads. What we need is someone their not watching for. Of course the King of Gypsies is going to look for the children, but more children putting 

themselves, supposedly, in harm's way? They see us as a careful, selfish people. They'll never think of it."

"I'll stand by him in this," Adrienne stated as she smoothed her skirts. "Who else?"

"Me!!" Camille announced.

"Me too!" Marc and Isaac yelled out together.

"I still don't like it," Gabriel murmured. "They're all too young. Camille's only four, Isaac only five…"

"And you're a whiny ten-year-old that sounds less brave than the four!" Marc hollered at him. "Just do what Henri says and it'll be alright. Maman says he's just like Uncle Clopin was when he was younger, so he's going to lead right."

Henri grinned at this, straightening his stance a little and holding his head high. "Here's the plan. Marc, Isaac, and Camille will be the distraction. You three can slip into the smallest corners to hide, so it will be easiest for you to get away. Gabe, you're in whether you like it or not, so you'll be standing watch. Your paranoia _will_ serve a purpose one way or another."

"So what will you and Adrienne be doing?" Gabriel asked.

"We will sneak into the Palace of Justice and save everyone!"

"If Uncle Clopin got caught in all of that, what makes you think you'll get out?"

"Gabriel, if you don't shut that trap of yours then I'll tell Maman exactly who set those fireworks off that were meant for the show last year.'

The younger boy went dead pale in the face. "You wouldn't do that!"

"Yes I would! Now just do what you're told and everything will be alright."

Gabriel snorted, frustration clear on his small, awkward features. "Fine, but I don't have to like it."

"No, you certainly do not."


	4. The Festival of Fools

Chapter Four: The Festival of Fools

Everyone in the Court of Miracles had woken early. Their eyes were bright with the thought of the Festival. Even if Christmas had been dreary, cold, and unloving, the Festival of Fools could always bring a spark to even the most depressed of people. A few individuals had started the more intoxicating activities the night before and were well on their way to continuing by the time Clopin was rousing everyone up to hit the streets as the sun came up.

"Wake up!" his voice echoed through the Court. He stood on the stage, wide grin spread across his face, wild clothes replacing the more somber ones he'd been wearing. The children, of course, were the first to gather around him. "Do you know what today is?" he hollered out.

For the first time in what seemed like ages, the little puppet Clopin popped out of nowhere, sending giggles throughout the group of children. "The Feast of Fools!" it yelled in its squeaky voice.

"Hush you!" Clopin reprimanded the puppet. "Let the children answer."

"Topsy Turvy day!" they yelled back, laughter exploding.

"Then let's get to it!"

Everything went chaotic, though in the way that Clopin knew it best. Costumes were everywhere on the streets of Paris and this was the first time that he didn't feel like someone was trying to rip his soul from him. The tents were about finished be set up as the people began to gather. Esmeralda was nearly finished getting ready as the music began and Clopin knew that she would be his star attraction this year.

A slight frown turned his mouth down as Judge Claude Frollo rode into the square in his carriage, but he shook it from his mind. This was the one day that he had to let his mind rest. If he didn't, the Festival and his people would suffer. He wouldn't allow that.

Everyone was dancing, spinning, and singing. Ale was being thrown around and drunk. Clopin hopped up and down, leading a large parade and announcing each event. He spun and saw what would make everything work out the way he was wanting it to. His eyes landed on a cloaked figure, ducking through the crowd as if he were trying to avoid being seen. A grin caught the edges of the king's mouth and he started towards him. Was he right? Could it really be who he thought it was? If it were, on the off chance, turn out to be exactly who he hoped it was, he'd found himself a treat indeed.

It was! Quasimodo, the bell ringer! He rushed over and took him by the wrist, pulling him straight in the middle to the festival, where he didn't seem to want to be. This was going to be fun.

"I don't like this."

"We heard you the first hundred times, Gabriel," Adrienne grumbled at her little brother, shuffling along the street. "Don't you have somewhere to go?"

"Yeah, but not until you and Henri do what you have to."

"You're our lookout, get to looking!"

Gabriel huffed in irritation and rushed off. Nothing was right about this entire situation. He should have told someone. Uncle Clopin was going to be very, very upset, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. He had to go through with Henri and Adrienne's plan.

The Palace of Justice was nearly deserted when Henri and Adrienne arrived. They'd seen their younger siblings and cousin race around, causing mayhem for what guards were there. It made it almost easy to sneak into the Palace. It was quiet for the most part, everything deserted except for a little noise down one hallway.

"They're being hidden down there," Henri said confidently.

"So what, we just rush down there and get them?" Adrienne whispered.

"Sure, why not? There's no one -" His sentence was cut off as the sound of regulated footsteps came down the hallway, causing the siblings to duck into hiding. Soldiers marched past them, ignorant to their presence. They said nothing amongst each other to give anything away.

As they passed, Adrienne locked eyes with her brother. "Now isn't a good time."

"Uncle Clopin knows they're down here," Henri said sadly.

"I can't imagine how he'd miss it."

"We just need to get back to the Festival before they notice we're missing. C'mon."

The Festival was in full swing by the time the siblings returned, but there was no sign of their young brothers or cousin. The crowd was in an uproar over the new King of Fools. It was the bell ringer 

himself, the hunchback of Notre Dame. People were throwing fruits and vegetables at him, tying him to the moving pedestal and spinning it. Henri spotted his uncle.

Clopin stood hidden in the throngs of people, anger clearly present on his face. He'd never meant for the poor creature to take beating like this. It was all supposed to be a good laugh. They wanted the ugliest face in Paris, and yet when he gave it to them they did not seem to care. They had no respect, these people, but only followed those fool of soldiers.

"What's going on, Uncle?" Adrienne's voice leapt above the crowd.

"They're being fools themselves," Clopin answered loudly.

The three Gypsies watched as the platform spun faster and faster, a plea for help echoing over the shouting from the abused boy, crying out to his master. It was La Esmeralda stepped onto the stage, causing a hush to fall over the crowd.. She whispered her apology to Quasimodo.

"You! Gyspy girl! Get down from there at once!" Frollo yelled out, anger apparent in his eyes. They had already made fools of him twice, once the King of Gypsies, who, in his eyes, had no room to make a poor judgment, and secondly when this very girl had come to him.

"Yes, your honour, just as soon as I free this poor creature," Esmeralda responded.

"I forbid it!"

Clopin shook his head. He knew what was coming next. The green eyed beauty was his freedom fighter, and he respected her for it. Heaven knew that he wished that everyone in the Court was just as she was. Perhaps, if so, they would have a fighting chance against the evil judge.

Esmeralda pulled a dagger from her skirts and purposefully rebelled against Frollo's orders. Her disdainful look was pointed directly at him, eyes blazing.

"How dare you defy me?" he growled out.

"You mistreat this poor boy just as you mistreat my people!" she yelled out. "You speak of justice, but you are cruel to those most in need of your help!"

Frollo's face contorted in anger. "Silence!"

"Justice!" Esmeralda cried out, eyes blazing in righteous anger. The crowd gasped at her brashness and she finished helping Quasimodo from his restraints.

"Mark my words, Gypsy, you will pay for this insolence," Frollo swore, anger seething from his very being.

"Then it appears we have crowned the wrong fool? The only fool I see here is you." She tossed the crown that had adorned the hunchback's head at the judge and laughter rumbled.

The order was given for her arrest and the Gypsy King put his focus back on his niece and nephew. "Get out of here," Clopin urged the children. "Quickly."

"What about you?" Adrienne asked, fear shining in her eyes for the first time. They'd gotten him once, would they have him again?

"I'll be fine, just hurry." He pulled his hat around his head and secured the mask on his face as he watched his the siblings rush off. The guards to surround Esmeralda and she started counting.

"Let's see… one, two three four… ten of you and only one of me," she said as she dramatically pulled a handkerchief from her bodice and sobbed. "What's a poor girl to do?"

Clopin had to admit he was proud as she blew her nose and disappeared in a puff of smoke. He'd taught her well. The Festival, if it hadn't erupted before that, was in pure chaos now as the guards 

chased her down. Frollo barked orders to find her, follow her wherever she went and not to let her escape. Her king prayed she could.

He'd slipped back away from the crowd, making sure all the Gypsies had gotten to safe hiding spots before he himself slipped down a back alley. With the uproar and the personal attack on Frollo himself, the heat on him would certainly be turned up. The Minister of Justice would surely want his people more than ever now. He had full faith that Esmeralda would have no trouble giving Frollo's guards the slip, even the new Captain of the Guard. He looked to be a complete moron.

"And where do you think you're going?" a chilled voice said from behind him.

Clopin turned to see a very disheveled looking Frollo standing at the end of the alley, three guards around him. The dancer surely had given him a run for it. "Well hello, Minister," he answered the elder man in a playful voice. "You're looking a bit worse for wear."

"Thanks to your bitch," Frollo growled.

There was a wall behind him and only a small hole to slip through should the King of Thunes decide to try to give him the slip. He'd put himself in quite a predicament. Nevertheless he took a jump for that hole and was caught from behind, slammed against the wall by one of the guards. It knocked the breath out of him and he cringed.

"Where would she have gone?"

"How should I know?"

"Because you are her king. You know everything that happens within your Court."

"So thinks you," Clopin answered flippantly.

Frollo sneered at him and leaned closer so that their noses were nearly touching. "Give me her location or I will rip apart one of those precious children you hold so dear to you."

"I don't know!" the dark haired Gypsy screamed. "Do you hear me, bastard? I don't know where Esmeralda has gone to, nor do I want to. You can't hold this one over my head, I have no control over it."

Frollo pulled a dagger from his robes and pressed it against the king's thin neck. "Where?"

"I don't know," he stressed.

The minister pulled back, anger and frustration written all over him. Clopin thought that he might be let free, but just as he was dropped by the guard, Frollo pinned him again, one bony hand pressing against his shoulder with a strength that once again surprised the Gypsy and the other gripped firmly around the dagger that was currently residing deeply in Clopin's side. "You take too much time, Gypsy King," he hissed in his ear where only he could hear.

"I told you it would take time," Clopin managed, a weakened feeling washing over him.

"You take too much. Be careful not to press me too far. My generosity will only last so long. Those children… my, so young to end their lives, don't you think?"

"Sorry bastard!"

"Now now, mustn't push me." He twisted the knife, causing Clopin to gasp in pain. His eyes widened and he felt everything begin to shake. "I may be pushed beyond my limits."

"Leave the children alone. They have never done anything to you. If you want to go after my people, take me. Won't that be enough?"

"No, because someone will rise in your place. I need you to do as I told you. If you last much long against it, then I will consider your end null and void, and I will have no choice but to go through with the repercussions that I swore before God that I would."

"Nearly killing me every time we meet does tend to slow things down," Clopin quipped. "A body can only take so much."

"Make sure you live, because if you disappear I will assume that you are going back on your word." He pulled the knife out, allowing the younger man to fall to the ground in a limp heap on the floor. He coughed and sputtered before he was able to find the strength to look up.

Frollo grabbed his chin and forced him to lock eyes. "I want those directions, do you hear me?"

"It's too early… it takes time. So many… I can't…"

"Speak up, _your highness_, I can't hear you."

Clopin couldn't seem to find the strength to talk and Frollo pushed him down roughly. "Keep everything I've said in mind," he said as he left him to look for his knew obsession. Everything seemed to fade around the edges of the injured man's vision and he struggled to stay awake. He couldn't pass out here, he refused to. If he did, Frollo got what he wanted. He would be dead and those children would die with him. He also knew that it would be difficult to explain how he had gotten away a second time. It hurt, badly, and he didn't know what to do. He wanted the whole situation to smooth out. He wanted those children back and he wanted his people whole.

"Please," he begged to the God he was sure never heard a scoundrel like him. "I can't do this much longer." Everything faded and he shook his head, desperately trying to clear it. It took everything he had to push his aching body upward and slide into a sitting position. Was it going to be that when 

everything on him had healed he would be beaten again? If so, he didn't know how long he would last, but what he did know is he had to make it to some place safe and fast.

"Uncle Clopin?" The voice was small and scared.

Clopin tried to turn, eyes stretching as far as possible. "Camille?"

The little girl launched herself at her dear uncle, latching herself around his neck, throwing him back onto the ground. She sobbed openly, shaking him. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Yes, dear, I'm hurt," her uncle managed, stroking her hair. "I'll be alright though, Camille."

"You're bleeding."

"I know." He shifted his weight around, trying to sit up. After what seemed like an eternity he pulled himself up so that he was once again sitting with his back against the wall. "Don't tell anyone, you hear me?"

"But Maman can help."

"Not this time, Camille. You need to be a good girl and keep this secret for your Uncle Clopin."

"Like the secret I'm supposed to keep for Henri?" she asked brightly.

An eyebrow shot up and Clopin turned to lock eyes with his niece. "What secret?"

"The one about him and Adrienne looking for the missing children. They're back now, so they're okay, but they went to the Palace of Justice."

"They did what?!" Clopin exploded, a sudden surge of energy rushing through his body. He staggered to his feet, hazel eyes alight with anger.

Camille shrank back, small hand covering her mouth. "I wasn't supposed to say anything! Please don't tell them I said anything!"

"Was it just them?"

"No… Marc, Isaac, and I were the distraction and Gabe was the watchout!"

"Have you seen Marc, Isaac and Gabe? Are they alright?"

"I saw Marc and Isaac… Gabriel's too much of a scaredy-cat to get caught!"

"But you haven't seen him?"

"No…."

"Hurry," Clopin ordered as he grabbed Camille's small hand and started through the back allies. He heard her whine as she couldn't keep up and scooped her up, holding her closely to him. He didn't care if it hurt his side; he needed to make sure that no one else was taken.

It took what seemed like forever to make it to a secret entrance and through the catacombs. Everyone was sitting quietly, talking amongst themselves. His eyes locked with Henri's and he looked as if he might come unleashed.

"Uncle Clopin!" the boy yelled out, seeing the blood stains on his tunic.

"Where's your brother?" the Gypsy King demanded. "Where is Gabriel?"

"What… what do you mean?" Henri asked, shrinking back from his angry uncle. "I doubt he even went to the Festival today…"

"No, and neither did you."

Henri stopped in dread, face growing pale. "Uhh…"

"Clopin! What happened?" Claire demanded.

"Later, Claire, I'm fine. I need a moment with your eldest son. Just a moment." His voice was stressed, but he was smiling to try to put his sister at ease.

Henri was half pulled after his uncle and he stumbled. "What's going on?" he managed as he was being dragged out of the main Court and into one of the side caverns.

"I told you and your sister to stay the hell away from the Palace of Justice!" he hissed, getting in his nephew's face. "You lied to me, knowing you were going to do something."

"How could we not?" Henri demanded. "Those are our friends being taken! We can't stay down here forever, and now you'll have us locked up tighter than Frollo ever would! You can't seem to find them, or help them if you can find them, so we had to take the matter into our own hands."

"You're only a child."

"And why would they suspect me of anything?"

"Where is Gabe?"

Realization struck Henri. He'd seen his other two younger brothers, Camille had been with their uncle, and Adrienne had not left his side. The only one in the whole plan missing was Gabriel, which no one had seen since they'd split ways. He sank to the floor, everything inside of him hurting. He'd put his little brother in danger and had not been there to pull him out of it.

"Do you see now, Henri?" Clopin asked him in a more hushed tone, forcing himself to be gentle. "I fear for all of you. I'm doing everything I know to do, and yet somehow it all keeps happening, but what do you think the Palace of Justice will do when a Gypsy child is delivered to their front doorstep?"

"Take them," Henri murmured. "What have I done?"

"You've been rash in your decisions, not thinking them through," Clopin answered him, putting a shaky hand on his shoulder. "Believe me, it's nothing I've never done."

"But you didn't get your younger brother captured by Frollo!"

"No, but I'm sure if you ask your Uncle Jules about our childhood, he'll tell you several stories of what I put him through, but that is beside the point. Right now you must remain calm and levelheaded. I won't see all of my nieces and nephews be captured, or any children for that matter, by a madman."

"He's focused on Esmeralda, isn't he?" Henri asked sadly. "She's really nice."

"Yes, she is," Clopin answered. He had to admit he'd been fond of the girl since she'd come to the Court. She'd been so young and fragile then that it made him feel proud to watch how much her spirit had grown. It was as if she had taken all of the cruelties put upon her and turned them around into kind words and deeds for others. "But don't worry about Esmeralda. She's very clever."

"What are we going to do about Gabe?"

"I'll think of something, don't worry, but I need to know that you and Adrienne won't do anything rash."

Tears were streaming down Henri's face. "No, Uncle Clopin."

"Good. Now sit here for a moment, I need to speak with that other adults."

Henri watched him make his way to where several very shaky Gypsies sat, all with fear shining. Everything they had worked so hard for seemed to be falling all around them, and his Uncle Clopin was catching it all on his narrow shoulders. He could only hold it off so long, and when he finally faltered, Henri felt for the entire community.


	5. The Breech of the Court

Chapter Five: The Breech of the Court

Claire had not taken the news of Gabriel's absence well. It was never stated to her that her other children and her brother's eldest daughter had gone scampering off to uncover what mischief they could find, but she did know that Frollo had her second eldest boy. Her Gabriel was her angel, as she called him, and for that he was named. True, he may not have been as brave as a Biblical angel of the stories she heard, but she loved him dearly, and, if forced to, might admit to favouring him over the others very slightly.

As days went by Frollo's wrath against the Gypsies escalated. He was fixated on Esmeralda and was offering silver for anyone who might give him her whereabouts. His frustrations grew with his failure to understand why they were so protective of one another. Clopin sat in quiet observation, praying for her safety to a God that he believed in, but was not sure heard him.

The news of her claim of Sanctuary, as admitted by the new Captain of the Guards, and then her escape from the cathedral via help from none other than the bell ringer himself, had been made known to her people. Now Frollo had truly gone mad and word had been set out that, if possible, every Gypsy needed to get to some place safely underground. This was not good news to their king, as that was what Clopin was trying to avoid. The longer he kept his people scattered, the longer they had to save those children.

"Clopin!"

He'd never heard a voice he loved so much until Esmeralda's rung through the Court. Clopin looked up from what he'd been working on to see the emerald eyed beauty running towards him. "Esmeralda! It's so good to see you safe."

"You too," she admitted, embracing him. "I'd heard you were a bit roughed up after the festival."

"When do the guards not rough me up these days?" her king pointed out with a wry grin. "It seems they find a new reason around every turn."

She frowned. "I never thought times would be harder than the old days," she murmured.

"They'll get better, dear, just wait," he promised. He hoped they would, honestly.

"I don't know how," she continued, staring at her feet. "The whole city is burning because of me… I was only trying to do right, Clopin, and I feel as if I've done more harm than good. I wanted to save everyone and turned out harming them."

"None of this is your fault," her king said sternly. "It's Frollo's. He's the one doing all this. No man in their right mind burns down half a city just to get at one girl." He had to say it to her because it was same basis that got him from bed every morning. Frollo was evil and had manipulated his way into finding an opening to take. Now he just had to find his way around it.

"Clopin! You're needed down in the catacombs."

Clopin nodded in the direction of the young Gypsy who had spoken. He patted Esmeralda's cheek playfully, hoping that his smile would catch to her and would spread throughout the Court as it had so many times before. She managed a small one in return, watching him leave with fear in her heart.

He followed several of his men down into the sewer areas. "We have spies," one explained.

"And you won't believe who it is!" the other said in hushed tones.

The three Gypsies peered over the edge of a ledge and spotted to figures walking. Clopin's lips turned up into a frightening grin. His sharp eyes brought the young Captain of the Guards and Frollo's dear bell ringer into focus. This could have been the breakthrough he'd been waiting for: Frollo had grown impatient, and with his impatience he had become stupid. Now Clopin would have him at no expense other than his own suffering for the last three months.

He could hear them talking to each other, wondering very loudly and very openly if this was the entrance to the Court of Miracles. Clopin was sorry to see the bell ringer in all of this, as he'd hoped to see the boy rebel against his tyrannical master, but his unexplained presence could not be explained any other way. He motioned for others in the catacombs to begin closing in.

"Speaking of trouble, shouldn't we have run into some by now?" Phoebus' voice echoed.

"What do you mean?" answered the softer, quieter voice.

"You know, a guard or a booby-trap…" the captain murmured thoughtfully, and all the air became tense as someone blew his torch out. "Or an ambush."

Light suddenly was no longer an issue as several of Clopin's other guards stood with their lit torches to light the old catacombs, surrounding Phoebus and Quasimodo. They came in on them from all sides, pushing them down and binding their wrists. Clopin flipped off of his perch and landed right in front of them, rocking back and forth. "Well, well, well," he drawled out. "What have we here?"

"Trespassers!" "Spies!" the others yelled.

"We're not spies!" the Captain tried to say as his mouth was gagged.

"Don't interrupt me!" Clopin answered him, pointing a long finger in his face. He was going to enjoy every moment of this, he knew. He had taken their presence in his home as a sign that it was time 

to fight back, and fight back he would with everything he had in him. "You're very clever to have found our hideaway," he continued, flipping a torch of his own and watching it seemingly light by itself. He lit the other stick from the first. "Unfortunately, you won't live to tell the tale."

Two sets of eyes grew large as realization sunk in on the two young men and the Gypsy guards hauled them down the passage ways to the actual Court. Clopin was bouncing the whole way.

"You caught the Captain of the Guard!" Adrienne's voice shot above everyone else as she rushed her uncle. Her face was bright with the idea that they may get her younger brother back. "Will you hang him?"

"That is for me to know and you to find out with everyone else," her uncle teased. He leapt up onto the stage, spotting Henri along with his younger sister and their mother in the crowd. "Gather round, everybody, there's good _noose_ tonight! It's a double header with a couple of Frollo spies!" He waited for them to be led up to the stage and mocked their every step, causing laughter to shift through the crowd. "And they're not just any spies! It's Captain of the Guard, and his loyal, bell-ringing henchman!"

The crowd erupted and Clopin thought for a brief moment that they might rush the stage. Frollo's men had been hated a little more by each passing day since all of the disappearances had begun, and now it was going to turn into a bloodbath.

Phoebus and Quasimodo were both struggling against their restraints and gags, trying to tell Clopin something. "Hush now," he growled under his breath. "Something you must understand here: I am the lawyer and judge, all in one."

"Get 'em to tell us where everybody is!" Adrienne yelled from the crowd.

"Hang them like the thieves they are!" Henri followed in agreement.

Clopin suddenly realized how close he was to a riot, and not of the adults. It was the children that were going to riot against him for the blood of these two. He had to do something to draw their attention to happier matters. "Now that we've seen all the evidence," he began, having replaced his normal hat for a floppier version of Frollo's with an obnoxiously long ribbon on it, but was interrupted by his puppet that Gabriel and Isaac had always loved so much. "Wait! I object!" cried the little puppet, bringing giggles from the crowd. "Overruled!" Clopin yelled back, stirring even more laughter. "I object!" the puppet yelled again. "Quiet!" Clopin cried as he flung his hat over the puppet and the audience could hear a quiet curse from the small replica of him and laughter roared through the Court.

Hazel eyes shifted back and forth from the audience, making sure that they were settled, and to his captives to make sure they hadn't gotten their restraints any looser. "We find you totally innocent," he announced without any real thought behind the words. Where had that come from? A smile crept to his lips. "And that is the worst crime of all. So you're going to hang!"

His hands were on the lever as a resounding "Stop!" was yelled from the crowd. Who would want to stop this? It was what everyone had been waiting for, so why would anyone try to stop him? Esmeralda came forth from the crowd, pushing forward to get to the two men. Clopin felt his heart drop. He had truly wanted to hang someone."These are our friends!"

"Well why didn't they say so?" Clopin pouted, truly sour over his predicament.

As soon as his gag was off, Phoebus and Quasimodo screamed, "We did say so!" and the captain rushed to the front of the stage. "You all must leave! Frollo's found this place and he plans to attack in the morning with a thousand men!"

The Court fell apart all at once. Men and women scrambled to find something to help them. Clopin felt something inside of him clench. Even after all of the preparation he had done, Frollo still 

found them. It was as if he could not win and was never going to be allowed to. He watched Esmeralda approach the blond outsider with love in her eyes.

"You took a great risk by coming here, and even though we don't show it well, we're truly grateful."

"I would have never found it without Quasimodo's help!" Phoebus responded, pulling the deformed boy towards Esmeralda, grinning the whole way.

"Nor would I!" a voice boomed over the Court.

Clopin looked over in terror. It truly was his worst nightmare come to life. Paris was being burned, they had no escape, every exit – even the secret ones – had been blocked off as they tried to run for their lives, and he felt one of the guards that he'd recognized from his beatings pull his arm up behind him, growling in his ear threats of what he'd do to those innocent children if he so much as flinched.

"After twenty years of searching, the Court of Miracles is mine at last," Frollo sneered, walking to the middle where Quasimodo stood with the captain and Esmeralda. He continued babbling about something or another, but in all honesty Clopin didn't really care. He was more focused on watching each of his family members and friends being hauled away.

"There will be a little bonfire in the square tomorrow, and you're all invited to attend!" Frollo announced, causing each and every Gypsy to stare.

"You were too slow, _boy_," the judge's voice entered Clopin's ears. The younger man forced himself to look up. "So I had to look to other places. Now, tomorrow, the fires will begin with La Esmeralda and continue with each and every child from this Court. Then I will burn the adults. You will be the last, dear king."

"You're sick."

"But it gets the job done," Frollo answered with a shrug that sent chills up Clopin's spine. He hoped beyond hope that they could get out of this one.


End file.
